Luo An fell into a deep, deep sleep, and even had a rare dream.
In the dream, he seemed to be adrift on an endless sea. Water surged from all directions, waves beating against his body, pressing him down into the depths.
Luo An tried to resist, but his arms had no strength. Far from fighting back, his struggles only made him sink deeper.
The seawater gradually engulfed his nose and mouth. Luo An tilted his head back with difficulty.
Salty seawater flooded his ears and throat. Luo An’s breathing became increasingly labored, and he began to sink slowly…
Was this really how it would end?
Luo An wasn’t ready to give up, but the sea was too deep. Humans were too small compared to the boundless ocean.
His struggling limbs slowly grew cold. Luo An could feel his strength gradually ebbing away.
The dark seabed loomed like a blood-mouthed monster baring its fangs at Luo An. After countless attempts and failures, Luo An closed his eyes in despair.
Just as Luo An was sinking, a pair of strong arms suddenly came from behind.
The sensation of falling disappeared. Luo An was carefully cradled in someone’s embrace.
Luo An opened his eyes to meet Chu Jin’s gaze. Those eyes held so many emotions that Luo An was momentarily stunned.
But the dream continued. Dream Luo An opened his mouth to speak, but could only release a stream of bubbles.
Chu Jin grasped Luo An’s waist, pulling him upward.
Chu Jin’s arms were strong and firm. Even in the cold sea, Luo An could feel Chu Jin’s hands on his lower back, their palms radiating heat.
The sea surface grew stormy, dark clouds and lightning following close behind, making their ascent even more difficult.
A small ship sailed in from the distance. Miraculously, the area around the ship was calm, sunlight breaking through the clouds to cast golden ripples around the vessel.
Beyond the small boat, the sea grew increasingly turbulent. Luo An sensed Chu Jin’s struggle and began swimming upward, too, after a moment.
But how could human strength withstand the assault of storm and lightning? A huge wave struck, overturning them both.
The nearby ship seemed to be their only hope for survival. Luo An gritted his teeth, following Chu Jin towards it.
But just then, another massive wave crashed down on them! Their resistance seemed to ignite the sea’s fury. Amid flashes of lightning and thunder, the waves grew twice as high as before!
Luo An had been holding Chu Jin’s hand the whole time. Seeing the boat so close, yet with a wave looming before them, he instinctively moved to push Chu Jin forward, wanting Chu Jin to reach safety first.
But Chu Jin had the same idea.
As Luo An pushed Chu Jin away, Chu Jin’s arm flexed powerfully. With a pull, he completely switched their positions.
— Luo An was sent into the safe zone surrounding the small boat.
Perhaps it was Luo An’s imagination, but he thought he saw a faint smile on Chu Jin’s face, as if bidding farewell. Chu Jin waved his hand gently.
Another massive wave crashed down. Chu Jin bobbed up and down in the waves. The sea seemed to have found a new prey; Chu Jin’s body began to sink as he lost all strength. Without thinking, Luo An rushed towards Chu Jin, only to find an invisible air wall had appeared around the boat.
“Chu Jin!” From behind the air wall, Luo An watched everything unfold, his eyes wide with horror.
Luo An clenched his fists tightly, throwing punch after punch at the transparent barrier!
But it was all in vain. Luo An could only watch helplessly as Chu Jin was swept up by the waves and dragged into the bottomless darkness.
“Chu Jin—”
…
Luo An suddenly sat up in bed, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
“…Chu Jin, Chu Jin…” Still caught in his recent dream, Luo An murmured Chu Jin’s name. Without pausing to observe his surroundings, Luo An scrambled out of bed, not even taking time to put on shoes before rushing to find Chu Jin.
A flurry of hurried footsteps sounded in the corridor outside. His parents pushed open the door with trembling hands.
“…An’an?”
Mrs. Chen’s call was cautious, as if afraid of shattering something.
Luo An’s movement froze, belatedly registering what was happening.
He looked at his own hands, then at the wrinkles in the bedding where he had been sitting… Could he touch things now?
Luo An turned his head slowly, like a rusty machine, looking towards his parents in the doorway in disbelief.
“…Mom?” Luo An responded equally softly, cautiously, and extremely slowly.
Mrs. Chen could no longer hold back. She rushed forward, enveloping Luo An in her arms.
“An’an, my An’an…”
Tears rolled down her cheeks, falling onto Luo An’s shoulder. The heat made Luo An’s heart ache with a bittersweet feeling he couldn’t suppress, his eyes stinging.
Mr. Luo turned on the room light. An entire medical team was already waiting outside.
Luo An turned to look at his father, suddenly realizing that although only four short years had passed, his father seemed to have aged a decade or more. Wrinkles creased his forehead, and his temples were streaked with white.
“Dad,” Luo An called out.
Mr. Luo opened his mouth, but no sound came out. After a long moment, he finally said, “You’re back?”
Home is always a harbor from life’s storms.
The four-year gap suddenly closed with this casual greeting, dissolving all the tumult, as calm as if Luo An had just stepped out for a moment.
“Mm,” Luo An answered.
He added, “It’s me.”
Not someone else.
After greeting each of his brothers, Luo An was taken for a medical examination.
There were no physical abnormalities. During the time the intruder had taken over, Luo An’s parents had been extremely careful not to harm Luo An’s body.
They had taken excellent care of Luo An, even when he was just an empty shell.
The examinations lasted until the early hours. Luo An returned to his room amid everyone’s concern and care.
“Oh, Mom,” Luo An said.
He didn’t know how he had returned to his body. It all seemed so unbelievable.
Luo An guessed that his recent experience “in the sea” was probably just a dream.
But why would he have such a dream?
Where was Chu Jin? Luo An still remembered everything he had seen in Chu Jin’s office. Chu Jin… had been searching for him all along. There was so much Luo An didn’t understand, so much he wanted to ask Chu Jin.
Thinking of this, Luo An turned to Mrs. Chen. “Mom, where’s Chu Jin?”
“Xiao Chu…” Mrs. Chen’s eyes darted away. “Xiao Chu, he… went to rest first.”
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